The big metal boxes that have showed up on tree lawns around the region to help AT&T provide cable service have a flaw that can make them catch fire.

After four boxes around the country -- including one in Strongsville -- exploded or burst into flame, AT&T has decided to replace the backup batteries believed to be the problem.

About 17,000 street-side cabinets for AT&T's U-Verse cable system will have the batteries replaced soon, according to company spokespeople. Though the problem batteries are in only "some" of AT&T's boxes, according to a written statement from AT&T, spokesman Bob Beasely could not say how many are in Ohio.

A box caught fire on Misty Lake Drive in Strongsville on the afternoon of Sept. 17, according to the Strongsville Fire Department. Sgt. Frank Nosal said records do not indicate any damage other than to the box. The cause was not determined.

The first cabinet to explode was in 2006 in Houston, according to telecom trade Web site Light Reading, which reported the replacement program Monday. Another cabinet caught fire in Houston and the other was in Wauwatosa, Wis. No one was hurt by the malfunctioning lithium-metal-polymer batteries, according to AT&T spokesman Michael Coe, but there was some property damage. Coe would not say how much the replacement program would cost, but said the company is not changing its capital expenditure estimates. Nor will the rollout of U-Verse be affected, he said.

U-Verse kicked off service in Northeast Ohio in June in 24 communities. It now provides cable in 70 communities.The batteries came from Avestor, a Canadian company that went bankrupt in October 2006. AT&T stopped installing the batteries in early 2007, after the first incident, Coe said. AT&T also hired a consultant to investigate their safety, but was told the batteries posed no greater risk than alternative batteries from other suppliers.